Garment structure and method of manufacturing the same



H. MESSERLI 2,931,202

roams THE SAME April 5, 1960 GARMENT STRUCTURE AND METHOD OF MANUFAC Filed June 5, 1956 R. w m z United States Patent'O I GARMENT STRUCTURE AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING THE SAME Hans Messerli, Schwyz, Switzerland Application June 5, 1956, Serial No. 589,557 Claims priority, application Switzerland May 28, 1951 2 Claims. '(Cl. 69-22) This invention relates to garment structures and to a method for preparing a garment structure made of a material which consists of a fur or fleece backed with or connected to a skin or like sheet having a relatively high tensile strength.

The present application is a continuation-in-part of my co-pending application Ser. No. 290,456, now abandoned, filed May 28, 1952.

Natural and artificial materials are known which include, on one side, a warmth-providing insulating material and, on the other side, a backing so that it is capable of retaining its shape and providing the necessary support. .7

The insulating material can be a natural fur such as, for example, rabbit fur, cat fur and the like; or the insulating material canbe a fleece, such as lambs wool.

The term fur as used in the ensuing description is to :be understood as including those natural furs, and artificial products as are known to be attached to a backing material for support therefor and which are suitable for -use as garment linings and like materials.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved -method for preparing a fur equipped skin or like material for ultimate use and, further to an improved article of manufacture which is adapted to enhance ance of known garment materials.

; "The I invention is, furthermore, concerned with the economical use of known materials, a further object of the performthe invention being to provide an improved material employable in the manufacture of a greater number of garments than would heretofore have been expected.

To achieve its objectives, the invention contemplates modifying'the backing material in such a manner as to "enable it to be stretched controllably and with ease. The

invention takes advantage of the cohesiveness of the insulating material to resist severe deformation without being subjected to considerable distortion so that the Iperformance of its function remains substantially unimpaired.

Advantageously, the invention provides means conducive to the br eath ing of the material as same is rendered somewhat po'rous which is considered very desirable in a greatnumber ofapplications. However,

the, degree, to which the material is rendered porous is readily controlled and can be made negligible if the Ifapplication so requires.

i'iFurthermore, in accordance with the invention, it is possible to arrange in'oi' associate with the insulating material, as an aim'ofthe aforesaid improved method,

.adesign, grain or like pattermthe appearance of which can be" predetermined; Thus, the invention renders the possibility of considerably improving the appearance of said garment materials.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be pointed out in the following description and claims and are illustrated in the accompanying drawing which discloses the principle of the invention and the best mode 2,931,202 Patented Apr. 5, 19 60 different method in accordance with the invention,

Fig. 3a is a cross-section of the material of Fig. 3,

Fig. 4 illustrates a garment material in which the backing material has been operated upon in accordance with a further embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 4a is a cross-section of the material of Fig.4 taken along lines la-4a, I

Fig. 5 shows the material of Fig. 4 stretched in'accordance with the invention,

Fig. 5a is a cross-section of the material shown in Fig. 5,

Fig. 6 illustrates the material of Fig. 4 deformed in accordance with a further embodiment of the invention,

Fig..6a is a cross-section of the material of Fig. 6 taken along lines 6a6a and illustrating a design or pattern caused in the insulating material in accordance with the invention.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, there is disclosed a garment material in Figs. 1 and 1a comprising an animal pelt having fur as the insulating material 10 and skin as the backing material 12, which is integral with the insulating material.

The insulating material 10 may generally hereinafter be designated as fur or fur-like material and includes natural furs, such, as rabbit and cat fur or lambs wool, vegetable products such as cotton, and synthetiematerials such as nylon or rayon.

' The backing material 12 can be any sheet material having the requisite tensile strength, .such as natural skin ofa natural fur, a separate natural skin which has been attached; to the fur or fur-like material, or anatural ,or synthetic product such as rubber or plastic. If, however, the backing 12 is separate from the insulating material, it is required that the materials 10 and 12 be adhesively or otherwise attached to one another.

In accordance with the invention, the backing '12 is provided with slits 16 which are unidirectional, disposed in staggered relation to each other and arranged in parallel rows. Preferably, the ends of the slits 16 of adjacent rows overlap as shown, but the invention contemplates that the rows be also spaced from each other at 11.

It will be noted that vertical rows 13 are formed by corresponding slits 16 in every other horizontal row.

Furthermore,- these slits 16 form also diagonal rows for a purpose which will hereinafter be described.

Figs. 2 and 2a show the result of applying a stretching force to the backing 12 in accordance with the invention. This force, which can be applied either manually or by machine as indicated by the arrows 14, causes the slits 16 to assume the shape of ellipses 16 (the minor axes of which lie in the direction of the force) and in this manner, as is clearly shown in the;1dr,awing,,,the area covered by the materials 10 and 12 is considerably increased.

Basically, therefore, the invention enables a garment assigns More particularly, however, the lengths of the slits 16 further enable the processto be controlled since, by virtueof their dimensions, natural ellipses 16 will be formed beyond which additional force will have to be exerted. I

If desired, the apertures 16' formed by the deformation at the backing 12 can be permitted to show through the material 10. Normally, however, it will be required that the turlike material 10 retain its appearance of solidity. The invention relies upon the cohesiveness of the insulating material 10 to retain its solidity.

Dimensions and directions of the slits 16 are, of course, simply predetermined and controlled and can be formed in the backing 12 by either hand or machine. If the backing 12 is ultimately to be a breathing" material, the slits16 are made long or are placed more closely to gether, Thus, the resultant product is provided with a larger number of bigger apertures through which air can easily pass.

On the other hand, if the backing 12 is to remain substantially impermeable, the slits 16 are made smaller and are spaced more widely apart.

It is not necessary to restrict the direction of the stretching force to a direction which is transverse to the slits 16. Figs. 3 and 3a illustrate the result of applying the stretching force diagonally according to arrow 14' across the backing 12 to form ellipses 16".

It will be noted that for this operation, the diagonal rows of slits 16, heretofore referred to, facilitate the application of the force and the resultant deformation of the backing 12. a a

The slits 16 need not be arranged in unilinear manner and as shown in Figs. 4 and 4a can be angularly disposed or transverse as are the slits 18 and 20. r The slits 18 and 20 are'arranged alternately in horizontal and vertical rows which are also so disposed as to form diagonal rows. Figs. and 5a show the results of applying a stretching force to the backing 12 as has been 'indicated. If sufficient force can be exerted, the slits will be caused to open as circles 20. Thus, if sufficient force is applied to the backing 12 in the direction of the arrow 22, the slits 20 will be transformed to circular openings 20', thus further increasing the area covered by' Cir the garment material since the areas of these openings will be added to the area of the backing material. The slits.

:18 can, of course, also be stretched in a direction normal to arrow 22 to circular form but, as illustrated, they need only be stretched enough so as to constitute ellipses 18 in a manner such as has previously been described.

The method which has been noted can also be used to impart a design to the insulating material 10 as shown #in Figs. 6 and 6a. If the material 10 is very cohesive or if sufiicient force is employed in the direction of the arrows 22, 22, the grooves 24 will appear in the surface of the material 10. The ridges 26 will impart a design toth'e material 10 in accordance with the original dispositionof the slits 18 and. 20 and according to the extent of "force which was exerted. 'In conclusion, attention is directed'to the fact that basically the invention provides a method for economically using garment materials composed of a fur-like ma- .terial attached to a backing having a comparatively high tensile strength. This is achieved by sliting the backing material which is subsequently deformed to constitute apertures whose areas add to the area of the original ma-' te'rial. These apertures can be controlled as to size so as -to enable the backing materials ability to breathe out to be mcreased-if so desired. Furthermore, the force a 4 used for deforming the backing, material can be used in conjunction with a predetermined location of the 'slits to efiect a design or grain in the composite material.

The layer of fur-like material, in the instance of lambs wool, will be stretched but normally adjacent layer parts will not be severed from each other, where the stretching force is controlled or preset. If the stretching force is further increased, the above-mentioned design or pattern in the uppermost surface of the layer of lambs wool may be created (see Fig. 6a).

The disposition of the slits as shown or the application of forces applied in the directions as illustrated may be readily varied and it has been found that despite stretching of the skin surface the fur-covered surface although likewise distended will not open up to the extent that said latter surface would be interrupted or would appear to be damaged. There will now be obvious to those skilled in the art many modifications and variations which do not depart from the spirit of the invention, but to whichwill inure the various objects and benefits as aforenoted.

It will be seen that there has been provided according to the invention a method of preparing a lambs woolcovered skin of predetermined area comprising forming a plurality of slits oriented in two substantially perpendicular directions, and stretching the fur-covered skin across said two directions to openthe slits into apertures whereby the skin with lambs wool cover extend over an area "greater than said predetermined area, while the texture of said lambs wool remains substantially unaltered.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed .as new anddesired to be secured by Letters Patent, is:

"jacent slits of each of said rows extending in a direction perpendicular to each other, said slits being of a substantially elliptical shape with said hair covering said slits and having a pattern determined by 'said substantially elliptical shaped slits.

2. A method of preparing a garment material of a. predetermined area from an animal fur-bearing pelt including hair and a skin portion and being substantially smaller than said predetermined area, comprising the steps of slitting said pelt through only said skin in aligned rows of slits with said slits of each row extending normal to each of the adjacent slits and stretching said skin portion in a first direction normal to some of said slits and parallel to other of said slits and in a second direction parallel to some of said slits and normal to said other of said slits to open all of said slits to a substantially elliptical shape while visibly deforming said hair so that said skin portion conforms to said predetermined area while said hair is provided with a pattern.

7 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS a Great Britain Aug. 16, 1935 

